Is my frame salvagable?

You could salvage the frame, but it isn't worth it. The frame failure
that you describe is very very common on the Savage, United, and similar
frames that have that style of lollipop bearing holder.

Don't get the Taiwanese lollipop design confused with the Pashley
lollipop design. The Pashley is better designed and not prone to the
frame failure that you experienced with your Taiwanese frame.

Best bet is to replace the frame with a main cap style frame. You'll
also need to get new bearings because the Taiwanese lollipop frames use
a bearing that is only sealed on one side. With a main cap style frame
you need a bearing that is sealed on both sides.

You can get a United main cap frame or a Yuni frame from unicycle.com.
Or you can get a colored frame from 'Bedford Unicycles'
(http://www.bedfordunicycles.ca/). You can see pictures of the Bedford
frames in 'Bedford's Webshots gallery'
(http://community.webshots.com/user/bedford_uni).

There is a FAQ 'here' (http://londonunicyclingclub.ca/bearings.htm) on
how to remove and replace bearings.

Or you could replace the uni with a black Torker Unistar. The black
Torker is a heck of a deal. Great seat (just like a Miyata seat), good
wheel, good rim, and a frame with main cap bearing holders.


--
john_childs - Guinness Mojo

john_childs (at) hotmail (dot) com
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I'd be going to a Torker for myself If my Juggleart (Taiwanese Modle)
Unicycle is Damage. I don't have a lollipop Bearings. Mine's a main cap
bearings holders which is good. If you want a photo of mine, I'll see
what I can do for a close-up shot.

David


--
djm - David John Mason

http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery/davidsalbum
davidjmason[at]unicyclist[dot]com
-David J. Mason-

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Hi Mandell,

The same thing happened to my Norco with the lollipop bearings: the
frame cracked right between the two bolts.

There is a suggested fix at this link (though it is not up at the moment
- when I used to look at this webpage, it was up and down with frequency
(perhaps it requires the hosting computer to be online?), so maybe it
will be up again later).
http://unixcomputer.net/new-photo/frame-broke/

Anyhow, the owner of the webpage fixed his lollipop frame by cutting a
section of steel pipe in half longwise, drilling it, placing it over the
broken section of frame and bolting it on. The only problem with this
fix is that then you may have metal bits sticking out to scratch your
ankle with. Everyone I asked told me to get a new unicycle, and maybe
patch the old unicycle up as a learner.

And if I recall, you commute on a 20" unicycle. It may be worth it to
get a new unicycle with a larger tire, unless you want to progress into
freestyle rather than commuting. It takes a bit of adjustment, but I
think it is worth it. Just a thought.

If you decide on a new unicycle, Darren Bedford has a huge variety of
unicycles in different sizes, prices and qualities. The info on his
webpage is severely limited and rumoured to be updated someday. Send
Darren an email (see John Childs post for contact info), ask a bunch of
questions and get a quote. Shipping a Bedford 24" from Toronto to
Vancouver last January was ~$20, I think. In Victoria, Fairfield Cycles
(www.fairfieldbicycle.com) has a few unicycles in the shop, mainly lime
green Miyatas. Puzzlingly, Fairfield is listed in the unicycle.com
dealer section, but when I asked in the shop, they said that they didn't
do custom orders for uni.com. You could always ask again if you are
interested. Otherwise, a bunch of your local bike shops should be
starting to carry MUni and trials unicycles, as Vancouver Island appears
to be a hotbed for offroad unicycling at the moment (according to a
couple of shops in Duncan, anyway).

Good luck! Let us know what you decide!

andrea


--
slugbath - Toodling...
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Do Taiwan lolipop frames crack between the bolt holes? Does a Chevy Vega
burn oil? Yes, it's inherent in their design. Just as the lolipop
unicycle would be perfectly fine if you didn't ride it much, the Vega
would be fine on oil if you didn't run the engine. Otherwise, these
problems were guaranteed to happen eventually.

Another possible patch-up for your frame would be to find some seat
clamps that fit down there. These could replace the two bolts, and
potentially hold things together just fine. Cut a slot up the side,
where the two bolt holes and cracks are, to allow the tube to compress
when the clamp is closed. Bring the uni to the shop when looking at
clamps to make sure the one you find is the rigit size to fit the frame,
and not too thick to get in the way.

Then your uni can be used as a spare, a trainer, or whatever. It's time
to get a "real" unicycle... :-)


--
johnfoss - Now riding to work

John Foss
the Uni-Cyclone
www.unicycling.com
________________

"Where's my kids?" -- Amy Drummond
"Where's my unicycle?" -- Andy Cotter
spoken one right after the other, mostly to themselves, at NAUCC 2003

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I actually had a guy weld a piece of thick steel (about a half inch)
over the holes, redrill the holes, and get longer bolts to fit through
the bearing holders. It worked well... until that uni got stolen...
I would post pictures, but obviously I can't (see above).


--
paco - Creator of the "BUni"

"One thing is for sure. Inspector Clay is dead. Murdered. And
-somebody's- responsible!"
-Plan 9 From Outer Space
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hey all, i had a no-name uni with lillypop bearings and had heard about
the problem of cracks around the bolt holes. What i did was get some
chrome tubeing that snugly fits on the forks, drill some bolt holes and
line them up with he origional ones. then simply glue it there with some
silicone so it has just a little flex. I could do 3 foot drops on it and
it never showed some weakness,
Hope that helps,
Mark


--
napalm - unicycle trampolinist

all you have to do to learn to fly is to throw yourself at the ground
and miss
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